THE EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGES (COMPULSORY NOTIFICATION OF VACANCIES) 
ACT, 1959 

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ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS 
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SECTIONS 

1.  Short title, extent and commencement. 
2.  Definitions. 
3.  Act not to apply in relation to certain vacancies. 
4.  Notification of vacancies to employment exchanges. 
5.  Employers to furnish information and returns in prescribed form. 
6.  Right of access to records or documents. 
7.  Penalties. 
8.  Cognizance of offences. 
9.  Protection of action taken in good faith. 
10.  Power to make rules. 

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THE EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGES (COMPULSORY NOTIFICATION OF VACANCIES) 
ACT, 1959 

ACT NO. 31 OF 1959 

[2nd September, 1959.] 

An Act to provide for the compulsory notification of vacancies to employment exchanges. 

BE it enacted by Parliament in the Tenth Year of the Republic of India as follows:— 

 1. Short title, extent and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Employment Exchanges 

(Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959. 
(2) It extends to the whole of India1* * *. 
(3) It shall come into force in a State on such date2as the Central Government may, by notification in 
the  Official  Gazette,  appoint  in  this  behalf  for  such  State  and  different  dates  may  be  appointed  for 
different States or for different areas of a State. 

2. Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 

(a)“appropriate Government” means— 

(1) in relation to— 

(a) any establishment of any railway, major port, mine or oil-field, or 

(b) any establishment owned, controlled or managed by— 

(i) the Central Government or a department of the Central Government, 

(ii) a company in which not less than fifty-one per cent. of the share capital is held by 
the Central Government or partly by the Central Government and partly by one or more 
State Governments, 

(iii) a corporation (including a co-operative society) established by or under a Central 

Act which is owned, controlled or managed by the Central Government, 

the Central Government; 

(2)  in  relation  to  any  other  establishment,  the  Government  of  the  State  in  which  that  other 

establishment is situate; 

(b)  “employee”  means  any  person  who  is  employed  in  an  establishment  to  do  any  work  for 

remuneration; 

(c) “employer” means any person who employs one or more other persons to do any work in an 
establishment for remuneration and includes any person entrusted with the supervision and control of 
employees in such establishment; 

(d)  “employment  exchange”  means  any  office  or  place  established  and  maintained  by  the 
Government  for  the  collection  and  furnishing  of  information,  either  by  the  keeping  of  registers  or 
otherwise, respecting— 

(i) persons who seek to engage employees, 

(ii) persons who seek employment, and 

(iii) vacancies to which persons seeking employment may be appointed; 

(e) “establishment” means— 

1. The words “except the State of Jammu and Kashmir” omitted by Act 51 of 1970, s. 2 and the Schedule (w.e.f. 1-9-1971). 
2.1st May, 1960, vide notification No. G.S.R. 382, dated 1st April, 1960,  see Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, sec. 
3(i),  in  respect  of  all  the  States  to  which  the  Act  extends  and  in  the  Union  territories  of  Delhi,  Himachal  Pradesh, 
Manipur and Tripura. 

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(a) any office, or 

(b) any place where any industry, trade, business or occupation is carried on; 

(f) “establishment in public sector” means an establishment owned, controlled or managed by— 

(1) the Government or a department of the Government; 

(2)  a  Government  company  as  defined  in  section  617  of  the  Companies  Act,  1956  (1  of 

1956); 

(3)  a  corporation  (including  a  co-operative  society)  established  by  or  under  a  Central, 

Provincial or State Act, which is owned, controlled or managed by the Government; 

(4) a local authority; 

(g)  “establishment  in  private  sector”  means  an  establishment  which  is  not  an  establishment  in 
public  sector  and  where  ordinarily  twenty-five  or  more  persons  are  employed  to  work  for 
remuneration; 

(h) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act; 

(i)  “unskilled  office  work”  means  work  done  in  an  establishment  by  any  of  the  following 

categories of employees, namely:— 

(1) daftri; 

(2) jemadar, orderly and peon; 

(3) dusting man or farash; 

(4) bundle or record lifter; 

(5) process server; 

(6) watchman; 

(7) sweeper; 

(8) any other employee doing any routine or unskilled work which the Central Government 

may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare to be unskilled office work. 

3.  Act  not  to  apply  in  relation  to  certain  vacancies.—(1)  This  Act  shall  not  apply  in  relation  to 

vacancies,— 

(a)  in  any  employment  in  agriculture  (including  horticulture)  in  any  establishment  in  private 

sector other than employment as agricultural or farm machinery operatives; 

(b) in any employment in domestic service; 

(c) in any employment the total duration of which is less than three months; 

(d) in any employment to do unskilled office work; 

(e) in any employment connected with the staff of Parliament. 

(2)  Unless  the  Central  Government  otherwise  directs  by  notification  in  the  Official  Gazette  in  this 

behalf, this Act shall not also apply in relation to— 

(a) vacancies which are proposed to be filled through promotion or by absorption of surplus staff 
of any branch or department of the same establishment or on the result of any examination conducted 
or interview held by, or on the recommendation of, any independent agency, such as the Union or a 
State Public Service Commission and the like; 

(b)  vacancies  in  an  employment  which  carries  a  remuneration  of  less  than  sixty  rupees  in  a 

month. 

4. Notification of vacancies to employment exchanges.—(1) After the commencement of this Act 
in  any  State  or  area  thereof,  the  employer  in  every  establishment  in  public  sector  in  that  State  or  area 

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shall, before filling up any vacancy in any employment in that establishment, notify that vacancy to such 
employment exchanges as may be prescribed. 

(2) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, require that from such 
date as may be specified in the notification, the employer in every establishment in private sector or every 
establishment pertaining to any class or category of establishments in private sector shall, before filling 
up  any  vacancy  in  any  employment  in  that  establishment,  notify  that  vacancy  to  such  employment 
exchanges as may be prescribed, and the employer shall thereupon comply with such requisition. 

(3)  The  manner  in  which  the  vacancies  referred  to  in  sub-section  (1)  or  sub-section  (2)  shall  be 
notified to the employment exchanges and the particulars of employments in which such vacancies have 
occurred or are about to occur shall be such as may be prescribed. 

(4) Nothing in sub-sections (1) and (2) shall be deemed to impose any obligation upon any employer 
to recruit any person through the employment exchange to fill any vacancy merely because that vacancy 
has been notified under any of those sub-sections. 

5.  Employers  to  furnish  information  and  returns  in  prescribed  form.—(1)  After  the 
commencement  of  this  Act  in  any  State  or  area  thereof,  the  employer  in  every  establishment  in  public 
sector  in  that  State  or  area  shall  furnish  such  information  or  return  as  may  be  prescribed  in  relation  to 
vacancies that have occurred or are about to occur in that establishment, to such employment exchanges 
as may be prescribed. 

(2) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, require that from such 
date as may be specified in the notification, the employer in every establishment in private sector or every 
establishment  pertaining  to  any  class  or  category  of  establishments  in  private  sector  shall  furnish  such 
information  or  return  as  may  be  prescribed  in  relation  to  vacancies  that  have  occurred  or  are  about  to 
occur in that establishment to such employment exchanges as may be prescribed, and the employer shall 
thereupon comply with such requisition. 

(3)  The  form  in  which,  and  the  intervals  of  time  at  which,  such  information  or  return  shall  be 

furnished and the particulars which they shall contain shall be such as may be prescribed. 

6. Right of access to records or documents.—Such officer of Government as may be prescribed in 
this  behalf,  or  any  person  authorised  by  him  in  writing,  shall  have  access  to  any  relevant  record  or 
document in the possession of any employer required to furnish any information or returns under section 
5 and may enter at any reasonable time any premises where he believes such record or document to be 
and inspect or take copies of relevant records or documents or ask any question necessary for obtaining 
any information required under that section. 

 7.  Penalties.—(1)  If  any  employer  fails  to  notify  to  the  employment  exchanges  prescribed  for  the 
purpose  any  vacancy  in  contravention  of  sub-section  (1)  or  sub-section  (2)  of  section  4,  he  shall  be 
punishable  for  the  first  offence  with  fine  which  may  extend  to  five  hundred  rupees  and  for  every 
subsequent offence with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees. 

(2) If any person— 

(a) required to furnish any information or return— 

(i) refuses or neglects to furnish such information or return, or 

(ii) furnishes or causes to be furnished any information or return which he knows to be false, 

or 

(iii) refuses to answer, or gives a false answer to, any question necessary for obtaining any 

information required to be furnished under section 5; or 

(b) impedes the right of access to relevant records or documents or the right of entry conferred by 

section 6, 

he shall be punishable for the first offence with fine which may extend to two hundred and fifty rupees 
and for every subsequent offence with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees. 

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8. Cognizance of offences.—No prosecution for an offence under this Act shall be instituted except 
by, or with the sanction of, such officer of Government as may be prescribed in this behalf or any person 
authorised by that officer in writing. 

9. Protection of action taken in good faith.—No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie 

against any person for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act. 

10. Power to make rules.—(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette 

and subject to the condition of previous publication, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act. 

(2)  In  particular,  and  without  prejudice  to  the  generality  of  the  foregoing  power,  such  rules  may 

provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:— 

(a) the employment exchange or exchanges to which, the form and manner in which, and the time 
within which vacancies shall be notified, and the particulars of employments in which such vacancies 
have occurred or are about to occur; 

(b) the form and manner in which, and the intervals at which, information and returns required 

under section 5 shall be furnished, and the particulars which they shall contain; 

(c) the officers by whom and the manner in which the right of access to documents and the right 

of entry conferred by section 6 may be exercised; 

(d) any other matter which is to be, or may be, prescribed under this Act. 

1[(3)  Every  rule  made  under  this  Act shall be laid,  as soon  as  may  be  after it  is made,  before  each 
House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in 
one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately 
following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification 
in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only 
in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or 
annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.] 

1. Subs. by Act 4 of 1986, s. 2 and the Schedule, for sub-section (3) (w.e.f. 15-5-1986).  

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